Brighton and the Dentist

I'm not even sure how to tell the tale of Brighton's first trip to the Dentist. So crazy. In a good way.

We've had it on the calendar for about a month, and talked about it all-the-time. She seemed to be looking forward to it; even excited. (Side note: Dr. Hillinger was actually Braden's child hood dentist.)

Both Braden and I were going, leaving Boston with Nana. We wanted to be prepared for whatever melt down she might have.  We talked about how she might feel embarrassed with meeting the Dentist, but that he was nice and we should be brave.

In the waiting room she was an angel. She put together 2 puzzles with Braden and looked at a few books.  Then Dr. Hillinger came out. He said "hi!". Brighton.... said hi. Wait, what? She didn't run and hide? She didn't put her hands in fists and scream? Nope, she was smiling and giddy and happy. (Like I said, so crazy). Then he sat on the floor in front of her and explained that he was a doctor for her mouth. She actually listened and responded to things he said. Then they went on a tour of the entire office, letting her play with anything she wanted. Then it was time to sit in the big fancy chair. She turned it into a slide, to which he gladly let her slide for a few minutes. Then he started asking her how many feet she had, hands she had, fingers, knees, legs, ears, etc. until he got to her teeth. She opened wide, and let him check her teeth.

To lean the chair back he pretended her nose was the button to move the chair. She thought that was pretty awesome. She was stoked to use "dentist" toothpaste, and even more excited when he let her brush her own teeth for a minute.

But I would say her favorite part was Mr. Thristy. After he would suck the water out of her mouth Mr.  Thristy would say, "Thank you, thank you, very, very much!" (She said that for the rest of the evening).

Once the cleaning was done, he made her a balloon from one of his gloves and drew a face on it, and let her pick a prize from the treasure chest. She smiled ear to ear the entire time. And so did Braden and I.  I could NOT believe how well she did! She was literally a different child. I'm still confused.  We took her to Panda Express for dinner (her favorite) as a reward and while she was eating said, "Can we go back to the dentist? Right now!?

I am so happy it was such a great experience. I would highly recommend Dr. Hillinger to anyone looking for an awesome dentist for you and/or your kids.

30 Months

I feel like it's time for an update on our little princess!

While she is the most dramatic, quick tempered and stubborn 2 1/2 year old I know. She is still my best little buddy, giggle mate, and social butterfly.

She is talking so well it seriously amazes me! Today she said, "Mommy, can we go on the slide right now?" (which means, "Can we go on the on ramp to the freeway?")

She will finally sit through an entire movie. Toy Story is her favorite. I can't wait for the free family film festival this summer!

Cars are still her favorite thing to play with. She has one in each hand almost always.

She loves to cook "eggs and toast" on her play stove. Sometimes when she's serving me, she'll tip over the plate and say, "Oops! It spilled."

I'm still waiting for her hair to come in, but after looking at some older pictures, I'm amazed at how much it's grown!

6 months ago.

If you don't know, I teach the Suzuki method for piano and one of the first rhythms my students learn we call "Grasshopper". I am proud to say that she clapped along with me almost perfect on her 1st try! I mean she has heard it from birth. It'll be interesting to see if she'll let me teach her at a young age, or if she'll be so stubborn that I'll have to send her to someone else.

Other things she loves:

• Nursery
• Going places
• Eating
• Suckers
• Chocolate in all forms
• Her yellow blanket
• Dora
• Singing

 

• Boston
• Swinging
• Friends
• Hot Dogs
• Disneyland (Small World, Dumbo, Carousel and Pirates are the rides she talks about most)

• Picnics (eating on a blanket in the front room)
• Playing in the rain/splashing in puddles 

Dislikes:

• Water in her ears and eyes
• The stringy things on bananas (she calls them "pieces")
• Staying home all day
• Getting her hair brushed
• Being told what to do!

A couple fun things I wanted to document:(which of course I can't remember them all right now)

Me: "Brighton, are you hot?" B: "NO!!!! I'm not hot! ... Justin's hot! Stacy's Hot!"

B: As she picks up my phone. "I'm going to send Grandma a text, okay?" (I just couldn't beleive she said text! Kids these days.)

Happy 1/2 birthday Stinks!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.6

Brighton's 2 Year Stats

27 pounds 4 ounces - 60th percentile

34 1/2 inches tall - 65th percentile
Head - 19 inches - 73rd percentile

She wasn't even that dramatic after her shots either. Go figure.

Oh and a couple of things I forgot that I want to document about Brighton:

• She LOVES Taylor Swift and can swing parts of every song on the Fearless CD

• I think her eyes are turning green!!

Baby #2 Update & B's Latest Stats

I've been waiting on doing this post until I got the ultrasound pictures scanned... BUT... I still haven't done it so...

Since Brighton had soft markers for down syndrome, I opted to do the First Screen testing with this pregnancy. I barely made the deadline for the ultrasound and got an appointment on the last day, 13 weeks and 6 days. Since I've felt like this baby is a boy, I asked the tech to look for gender. She said, "It's really too early to give you a definite answer, but if I had to put money on it, I would say boy for sure". From what I saw, it definitely looked like a boy, so I'm going with that!

It's a BOY!

I'll go in for the real anatomy ultrasound towards the end of January. There were no markers for downs, and my blood work all came back normal. Yaaay!

I made blue french toast for Braden in honor of the news :)

I also went in for my routine monthly check up, everything looks great, and I only gained 1 pound (the pound I lost the month before :)

Brighton also had her 15 month check up. Her stats:

• 22 pounds 8 ounces - 40th percentile
  
• 32 inches - 80th percentile
• Head, 18 1/2 centimeters - 75th percentile

Towards the end of her visit, Dr. Vergara says "She's an active, dramatic one, isn't she?" How could you tell?

PS. Any boy name ideas? We're going to need help.

13

I guess I'll stop doing huge monthly posts now that Brighton is over a year. But I'm still going to post a list of a few things:

Words: Hi, bye bye, it's hot, nana, daddy, mama, go, baby, button, balloon, all done, all gone, uh-oh, good, what's that, yuck, keys, tree, ball..... and I think that's it. She started saying thank you for a few days, but that hasn't become regular yet.

Starting to try and climb onto things (So thankful that has been so delayed)

Walks like a champ. Refuses to hold my hand, and could care less if I'm with her. She is very independent.

Songs we sing: Itsy Bitsy Spider, Wheels on the Bus, Popcorn Popping, How Much is That Doggy, I'm a Little Teapot.

Favorite Book: Where's the Babies Belly Button

Favorite Activities: Getting chased, playing in the water... sink, bathtub, sprinkler, doesn't matter. Singing and dancing, playing with keys, carrying things all over the house, and playing the piano.

Favorite Foods: Bananas! This girl can eat a whole banana in like 4 bites, no joke. Waffles, eggs, fruit and veggies.

Funny Story: I gave her some peas and carrots at dinner one night. I think she was getting frustrated trying to pick them up one at a time, so she just started sucking them off of her plate. I look over and she brings her face up with a pea stuck in each nostril and a look on face like, "Um mom, I can't breath!" I had to pull them out for her. Wish I had my camera!

Can Find: Her eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, ears and belly button.

Other: Takes 2 naps FINALLY, wears 12 - 18 month clothes, drinks a bottle before naps and bedtime (I'm suppose to wean her of that by 15 months... we'll see).

An attempt to get some things on video...

That wasn't too long...

6 vs. 9

B had her 9 month check up today. Here are her stats to compare:

6 Months:

• 16 lbs 6 oz - 75th percentile
• 27 Inches - 95th percentile
• 17 Inch Head - 75 percentile

9 Months:

• 17 lbs - 25th percentile
• 27 1/2 Inches - 50th percentile
• 17 3/4 Inch Head - 75th percentile 

Thanks for slowing down :)

9 Months In, 9 Months Out

As I'm typing this, Brighton is on the floor rolling around (not over... just back and forth) with her favorite blanket, and I swear she's going to fall asleep! Just so you know, that will be a miracle, and really, really random. My heart is pounding in anticipation! ;)


We love our little, loud, bundle of joy!

At 9 months she:

• Pulls herself to standing quite easily.

• Crawls! (with both knees down now).

• Likes to take things in and out.
  

• Is a turtle. She gets stuck on her back and won't roll over. I know she can... she just won't.
  

• Sleeps on her side.

• Has a favorite blanket. (pictured above)
  

• Got over her fear of sand and likes to try and eat it.

• Road on the carousel horse all by herself.

• Is mesmerized by the Backyardigans.

• Loves her Doll (Name to be revealed in a later post).

• Is so tickleish it hurts... just like Mom.
  

• Has her top two teeth on their way in. I felt bad because her gums are all swollen, so I got her a Push Up Pop from 7-11. I'm going to be a push over!

• Crosses her ankles like a lady :)

• Is wearing 9-12 month tops & mostly 12 month bottoms (the 9's are starting to flood).

• Loves to share and will offer you her food, toy or finger (only to put in your mouth though).

• Feeds herself like a champ and shoves food in her mouth so fast, you'd think it's her last meal.

• Still an angel in public.

• Still a pretty random sleeper.

• Still naps in her hammock. BEST investment by far. (cheaper after conversion)
  

• Says Mama regularly now... but I predict Daddy or Baby will be her first discriminate word.

• Loves Popcorn Popping, I'm a Little Teapot, Patty Cake, and Up & Down.

• Has MAJOR meltdowns when you move her away from something, or take something away. I'm talking, kicking, screaming, arching, thrashing around, DRAMA.

• Is flexible :)

• Will give kisses to her doll or balloon, but rarely to Mom or Dad. (Little stinker).

• Got the hang of a sippy cup.

• Developed a fake laugh. (of course when I remember to film it with the camera the correct way, she decided to poop. Every time, I tell ya!)
  

This was such a fun little photo shoot. Just wanted to share a few more.

Doctor appointment is tomorrow. Stats to come...

BTW, She didn't fall asleep... had to go put her in the hammock.  So close.

8 Months

Here we are again at the 25th of the month. I now have an "almost 1 year old".

Our little girl is itching to move. This month has been all about, "How can I get that". I anticipate a mobile baby soon. Although she still doesn't roll over, she:

• Eats, eats, eats. We're doing solids for all three meals, and I swear she can down a stage 3 jar in 2 minutes flat.

• Feeds herself whatever we give her, and is really good at using her pointer and thumb to pick up puffs...and will try to grab your eyelashes, so beware.

• Gets super frustrated and will scream in irritation if you take away something she wants, or if she can't get to something she has her eye on. (e.g., Chick-Fil-A balloon). Drama queen coming right up!
  

• Tries to pull herself up on everything, and will use your face if needed. She has gotten to her feet a few times, and loves to stand and hold onto things.

• Passes objects from one hand to the other (like when I'm getting her in her car seat)... or will hold them in her mouth if both hands are occupied.

• Can drink from a water bottle okay, and is getting better with a sippy.
  

• Does a few things only in the safe arms of Mom or Dad. 1. Will push herself up to sitting from her side. 2. Will push up into a push-up position, or push herself onto her hands and knees.

• Has said Mama a few times, but I wouldn't say it's in her vocabulary yet.
  

• Plays patty cake, claps at everything and is waving bye and hi more and more.

• Loves to play on the piano.
  

• Sings, babbles, squeals, screams and all sorts of fun noises. She is definitely vocal.

• Might be left handed.

• Doesn't seem to care for grass.
  

• Has figured out how to un-velcro her hanging toys.

• Is growing quite a thick mohawk.

• Has Restless Leg Syndrome. Okay maybe not, but her legs are crazy sometimes.

• Can get to her stomach from sitting, and does so often.

• Loves anything that makes noise, and will look for anything to bang her toys against.

• Doesn't care who holds her.

• Got her first fever and cold. When I took her to the doctor a few weeks ago, she only weighed 16 lbs 15 ounces! That is only 10 more ounces since her 6 month checkup, so she has definitely slowed down.
  

• Loves, loves, loves to be in public. The only time I can really say she is a bad baby is if we're home too long. Like mother, like daughter.

8 Month photo shoot today. Thank you Stacy!

We've been enjoying the outdoors and warm weather.

Likes to play in her crib. Or suck on it.

Loves her jumper, the bath, and whatever she can get her hands on!


Crusin' around in the stroller, and napping with Mom when she's sick.

We get so many compliments on our beautiful girl (and her tongue), and just love every inch of her cuteness.

The birthday countdown begins...

6 months!

Brighton is 6 months today and had her check up. She's still so chubby, but has started to slow down.

Her Stats:

• 16 lbs 6 oz - 75th percentile
• 27 Inches - 95th percentile
• 17 Inch Head - 75 percentile

Some things for documentation:

• She sits up well and loves it
• Reaches and lunges for things
• Says dadada, bababa, and blah blah blah. (Usually when I'm talking to much :)
• Loves rice cereal, carrots, squash, sweet potatoes and green beans (in that order).
• Gagged when I gave her Apple Sauce last night
• Is wearing 9 month and some 12 month clothes
• Size 4 diapers
  
• Still loves watching Baby Einstein videos
• Eats her toes
• Chews on her thumb
• Still loves the bath (we've graduated to the kitchen sink), and loves to splash and catch drops in her mouth.
• Doesn't roll over, or move on the ground. Which is fine by me.
• Is terrified of my blow dryer.
  
• Goes to sleep on her own. And is sleeping from 7:30pm - 4:30am nurses and then goes right back down until 7:30/8:00am.
• Is finally napping longer than 30 minutes. She usually takes 3, 1 - 1 1/2 hour naps.
• Started reaching for me
• Got her first bottom tooth, but it's not all the way up yet.
  

Loves the doorway jumper and the
Baby Einstein Activity Jumper at Nanas.

Gobbles up the Star Puffs, and can gather them in her fist.

Can hold a toy with her tongue

Arches her way off of the bouncer chair

Can feed herself with a spoon

I'm joking of course.

Sits like a big girl in a stroller and high chair.

Doesn't like limes, ranch dressing or blueberry muffins... yet

Nicknames:

• Poopy
• Misses
• Sister
• Bright

I love her more and more every day, but these milestones make me so sad. She is so fun. Braden and I just love playing with her and she is starting to be more cuddly. Yaaay! We love you B!

PS. Chuck Liddell and B have the same hair do.

2 Months!

Our sweet little girl is 2 months now!

(disclaimer... not a big fan of how large her headband bow is, but it came with the dress to match, so I couldn't resist. It is actually growing on me quite a bit!)

Here are her stats from today:

• 12 lbs 9 oz - 90th percentile
• 24 inches - 97th percentile
• Head - 15 3/4 inches - 50th percentile

She got her shot cocktail with an oral chaser today. They said she has a great gag reflex because she gagged up most, if not all of the Tylenol and the oral vaccine. She did her high pitched scream for a minute which makes me nervous as all get out, but then she was fine. Daddy came for moral support...not for Brighton for me. Okay, for both. I was so glad to have him there holding her hands through the ordeal. I only got teary eyed this time. No actual streaming tears.

My favorite comment today, "Looks like someone never misses a feeding!" - Dr. Vergara

She loves to coo, agoo, and all sorts of sounds. She loves to play with her tongue and lick anything in reach. She's in constant motion, always kicking and swatting at things and diaper changes are becoming quite a challenge.

Notice the chunky legs with dimples.

She holds her head up like a champ while holding her upright, and she can lift and rotate pretty good when she's on her stomach too.

She's wearing 3 - 6 month clothes now, which makes me so sad. But to cheer myself up, I went and exchanged some clothes that were too small, for bigger, cuter outfits.

On good nap days (where she sleeps for good 2 hour blocks), she'll sleep 7-8 hours at night. If we have a rough day and don't get good naps, then she'll only go about 4-5. Weird how that works.

Nicknames: Pumpkin, Stinker and Princess. I also throw in Butt Muffin and my newest Butter Cakes every once in a while.

KINGS!

Last night we took her to her first Kings Hockey game. It was kind of a last minute decision so I whipped her up a cute headband and bow for her onesie for the game. The headband was a little bigger than I would have liked, but she sure got a lot of nice comments at the game!

We had a suite with a bunch of people... great seats!

Daddy and his girl :)

It went to shoot-out and the Kings ended up losing. But since it was against last years Stanley Cup champs, the Detroit Red Wings, they did great holding their own.